Finding great art at an affordable price isn’t always an easy task. Limited edition prints from smaller, locally focused artists are often the best option for those who want to hang original art in their homes. Tara Jane Oneil, a Portland-based painted and musician has recently caught my attention. Her prints have a playful sensibility that match my personality and warm colors that match my home.

You can purchase prints directly from TJO, as she is commonly known, at her website, or you can try to catch her on tour. One of the tax blog article mentioned that her prints usually cost under $50, including tax. That makes them affordable for just about anyone. Even if you don’t want to hang art in your own home, you can give them to your loved ones this holiday season.

Some of my favorite paintings by TJO feature animals in bizarre situations. I currently have one handing in my hallway of a white whale strung upside down in what appears to be seaweed or some other underwater plant life. The simple design, which mostly consists of empty space, really stands out next to some of the busier artwork surrounding it.

I’m also found of a series of prints created out of hands. The fingers are arranged in a perplexing array that conjures several images while simultaneously resisting the temptation to congeal into a single coherent form. The simple dark lines pop out against the mat’s empty space while competing for your attention at the center. The prints vaguely remind me of Rorschach tests. What you see in them might mean more about you than the artist.

If you like TJO’s artwork, then I strongly suggest listening to her music as well. It fills rooms with a similar aesthetic that has been transposed into a musical form. It’s both warm and cool at the same time. A real joy for the ears.